Electric terminal



29, 1964 w. P. HERMAN ETAL.

ELECTRIC TERMINAL 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. 27, 1960 FIG. 2

INVENTORS WlLLiAM F? HERMAN BY JOSEPH C. COLLINS ATTNEY 1964 w. P.HERMAN ETAL 3,163,484

ELECTRIC TERMINAL Filed Dec. 27, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 9

INVENTOR WILLIAM F? HERMAN y JOSEPH .C. COLLINS United States PatentOfiice $363,484 Patented Dec. 29,, 1964 3,163,484 ELECTRIC TERMINALWilliam P. Herman and Joseph C. Collins, Providence,

RI, assignors, by mesne assignments, to North American Phiiips tlempany,End, a corporation of Delaware Filed Dec. 27, 19st], Ser. No. 78,513 3laims. (Ci. 339258) Our present invention relates to electricalterminals of the type which are adapted to be detachably interengagedwith one another.

The principal object of the present invention is to provide anelectrical terminal of the quick disconnect type in which a tab slidesinto a receptacle for making the electrical contact.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an electricterminal having a positive gripping and locking action between theinter-engaging parts.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a terminal inwhich the female element is designed to receive the conventional maleelements now in use.

Another object of the presentinvention is to provide an electricterminal having high current carrying capacity and positive lockingmeans.

' A further object of the present invention is to provide an electricterminal of the type described which can be manufactured from sheetstock in strip form and readily attached to electrical wires byautomatic machines.

With the above and other objects and advantageous features in view, ourinvention consists of a novel arrangement of parts more fully disclosedin the detailed description following, in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings and more particularly defined in the appendedclaims.

In the drawings,

FIG. 1 is an enlarged top plan view of an electric terminal with themale and female portions inter-engaged. FIG. 2 is a section taken online 2-2 on FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 1 showing another form of theinvention.

FIG. 4 is a section taken on line 4-4 on FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIG. 1 showing still another form of ourinvention.

FIG. 6 is a section taken on line 6-6 on FIG. 5.

' FIG. 7 is a side elevation of the form shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 8 is a top plan view of the male tab.

FIG. 9 is an edge view thereof.

FIG. 10 is a side elevation of the form shown in FIG. 3.

It has been customary to provide electric terminals for electronicdevices which permit rapid and easy connections and quick releases. Goodelectrical contact must be made and the parts must hold together againstaccidental release. Ihese terminals are referred to in the art as quickdisconnects and usually comprise a female receptacle in the form of achannel member and'a male tab which slides into the channel member andis frictionally heldtherein. For good electrical contact it has beenfound desirable to slightly taper the male tab and to similarly taperthe female channel member or receptacle.

This produces a wedging action which increases the hold ing power of theconnection but permits easy withdrawal.

The present invention is designedto' eliminate the taper by providing amore positive locking action for holding the tab in the channel. Thepresent invention therefore comprises a new type of female receptacleand a new type of complementary male tab. However, the receptacle hasbeen designed so that it will receive the conventional taper tab wherethose are still in use.

Referring more in detail to the drawings, FIGS. 1, 2 and7 illustrate oneform of the invention in conjunction with the novel male tab shown inFIG. 8. The female receptacle 26) comprises an elongated member stampedfrom sheet stock. The'front end of the member 20 is folded over fromeach side as at 21 to form a channel portion as shown in FIG. 2. Thebottom 22 may be curved upwardly to provide a spring friction contactportion. Extending integrally rearwardly from the channel portion 21 isa portion 23 having a flat bottom and upstanding sides 24. Rearwardly ofthe portion 24 are portions 25 and 26 for crimping on to the electricalconnector and the insulation of an electrical cord lead wire. The sidewalls 24 are pushed inwardly at 27 at opposite sides just back of thechannel portion 21 to form vertical rounded :obstructionsat the sides ofthe channel and extending from the top to the bottom of each wall 24.

The male tab shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 may be attached to an electricalcord connection or may be part of a multiple electronic connector. Therear portion 28 may thus be formed in any desired manner. The contactportion of the tab comprises an elongated flat member 29 having straightparallel sides 31 in the central area terminating with wider shoulders31 towards the rear and having a wider portion 32 at the thrust end. Thewider portion 32 is tapered at 33 at the front end and is provided atthe center thereof with oppositely formed V-shaped grooves 34 at eachside edge. Now as can be seen in FIGS. 1 and 2, when the tab is pushedinto the receptacle 20 the portion 32 snaps by the indented wallportions 27 because of the resiliency of the material of the receptacle.As the tab is thrust forwardly the indented portions 27 snap into thegrooves 34 to resiliently lock the tab into the receptacle. In themeanwhile the channel portion 21 and bottom 22 frictionally engage theportion 29 for the electrical contact. The shoulders 31 acting asadditional stops to limit the inward movement of the tab.

The above construction thus provides a quick disconnect electricterminal that permits the withdrawal of the tab with a positive pressurebut resiliently holds the parts in electrical engagment againstaccidental parting. r

The form shown in FIGS. 3, 4 and 10 illustrates an alternative form ofreceptacle for receiving the tab heretofore illustrated. In this formthe receptacle is again provided with a channel front end 35 which maybe rounded to a greater eXtent as shown in FIG. 4 for electricalcontact. The channel portion 35 may be provided with an upraised bottom36 for better spring contact. The rear end 37 is formed similarly to theform shown in FIG. 1 to receive the electrical cord connection. However,the intermediate portion 38 is provided with upstanding sides 39, thetop edges of which are bent inwardly from each side to form springfingers 40. Each spring finger being provided at its outer end with anangle portion 41 which forms a V in the path of movement of the tab. Asthe tab is pushed inwardly the front end snaps by the spring fingersduntil the spring ends 41 snap into the grooves 34'. of the tab.Electrical contact is made similarly to the form shown in FIG. 1. The

form shown in FIG. 3 therefore operates similarly to the form shown inFIG. 1 except that the separate spring members 4% form a more resilientlocking action than the indentations 27 shown in FIG. 1.

Now referring to FIGS. 5 and 6 it may be necessary to form the femalereceptacle so that it will not only receive the type of tab shown inFIG. 8 but will also receive the conventional tapered tab now on themarket. In this form the channel portion 42 at the front end of thereceptacle shown in FIG. 5 is extended rearwardly a greater distancethan in the forms shown in FIGS. 1 and 3. This is to ensure the properpositioning of the tab in the receptacle and to prevent verticalmovement thereof. The sides 43 are now provided with inwardly extendingdetents 44 as shown in FIG. 6 whichmay be spotted rather than extendingthe full height of the walls as shown in FIG. 2. The rear portion 45 isformed in the usual manner to engage the cord lead connection. The typeof tab shown in FIG. 8 can thus be inserted in this receptacle and theindentations 34 will look over the detents 44 in the manner abovedescribed. However, when a tapered tab 46 is inserted as shown in FIGS.and 6 the forward narrower end will engage the detents to support thetab at that point and the wider rear end will jam into the channel tofrictionally lock it at the rear. For this purpose the width of thechannel is made approximately equal to or slightly narrower than thewidth of the rear of the tapered tab 46. Electrical contact besidesbeing made at the inter-engaging points is positively made at the topand bottom as shown in FIG. 6. The elongation of the channel portion 42adds to the contact area. This form thus provides a female receptaclewhich is not only designed to interlock with the tab shown in FIG. 8 inthe same manner as in the forms shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, but will alsoreceive the tapered tab 46 now in use.

We have thus provided an electric terminal of the quick disconnect typein which a male tab and female receptacle can be quickly connected anddisconnected but in which a positive resilient locking action isprovided to prevent accidental dislodgment of the members. The variousforms are designed for high speed manufacture from sheet stock withautomatic tools. Other advantages of the present invention will bereadily apparent to a person skilled in the art.

We claim:

1. A female electric terminal for detachable electrical engagement witha flat male terminal having cut out portions at each side edge,comprising an elongated member having a generally rectangular contactportion at the front end with an upwardly facing bottom surface, thesides of said contact portion being bent inwardly toward each other toform a channel portion for receiving the male terminal, said inwardlybent sides having downwardly facing lower surfaces, at least a portionof said downwardly facing surfaces being spaced from said upwardlyfacing surface by a distance less than the thickness of said maleterminal whereby said downwardly facing surfaces and said upwardlyfacing surface exert pressure on said male terminal from opposite sides,an intermediate portion extending integrally rearwardly from saidcontact portion and having a substantially flat bottom, vertical sidewalls and an open top, and an electrical cord connecting portionextending integrally from the rear of said intermediate portion, theside Walls of said intermediate portion having integral means forengaging and interlocking with the cut out portions of a male terminalinserted in said channel portion, said means comprising spring fingersextending inwardly and rearwardly from the top edge of each of said sidewalls to exert pressure on said male terminal substantiallyperpendicularly to said side walls. l

2. A female electric terminal for detachable electrical engagement witha flat male terminal having cut out portions at each side edge,comprising an elongated member having a generally rectangular contactportion at the front end with an upwardly facing bottom surface, thesides of said contact portion being bent inwardly toward each other toform a channel portion for receiving the male terminal, said inwardlybent sides having downward facing lower surfaces, at least a portion ofsaid downwardly facing surfaces being spaced from said upwardly facingsurface by a distance less than the thickness of said male terminalwhereby said downwardly facing surfaces and said upwardly facing surfaceexert pressure on said male terminal from opposite sides, anintermediate portion extending integrally rearwardly from said contactportion and having a substantially fiat bottom, vertical side walls andan open top, and an electrical cord conneeting portion extendingintegrally from the rear of said intermediate portion, the side walls ofsaid intermediate portion having integral means for engaging andinterlocking with the cut out portions of a male terminal inserted insaid channel portion, said means comprising spring fingers extendinginwardly and rearwardly from the top edge of each of said side walls,said spring fingers terminating in angularly bent back portions adaptedto enter the cut out portions of the male terminal to exert pressure onsaid male terminal perpendicularly to said side walls.

3. A female electric terminal for detachable electrical engagement witha fiat male terminal having cut out portions at each side edge,comprising an elongated member having a generally rectangular contactportion at the front end, the sides of said contact portion being bentinwardly toward each other to form a channel portion for receiving themale terminal, an intermediate portion extending integrally rearwardlyfrom said contact portion and having a substantially fiat bottom,vertical sides and an open top, and an electrical cord connectingportion extending integrally from the rear of said intermediate portion,the sides of said intermediate portion having integral means forengaging and interlocking with the cut out portions of a male terminalinserted in said channel portion, said means comprising spring fingersextending inwardly and rearwardly from the top edge of each of said sidewalls to exert pressure on said male terminal perpendicularly to saidside walls, the bottom of said channel portion being bent upwardly tofrictionally and electrically engage the inserted male terminal.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS793,197 Hubbell June 27, 1905 1,509,822 Benjamin Sept. 30, 19242,157,188 Robinson May 9, 1939 2,552,392 Batcheller May 8, 19512,579,739 Hayes Dec. 25, 1951 2,697,820 Elliott et al. Dec. 21, 19542,682,040 Batcheller June 22, 1954 2,703,872 Duane Mar. 8, 19552,774,951 Kinkaid et al Dec. 18, 1956 2,816,275 Hamrnell Dec. 10, 19572,825,883 Batcheller Mar. 4, 1958 2,921,287 Matthysse et al. Jan. 12,1960 2,942,230 Gluck June 21, 1960 2,987,697 Davis June 6, 19613,066,275 Hammell Nov. 27, 1962 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,201,157 France July 6,1959 137,932 Great Britain Jan. 29, 1920 799,370 Great Britain Aug. 6,1958

1. A FEMALE ELECTRIC TERMINAL FOR DETACHABLE ELETRICAL ENGAGEMENT WITH AFLAT MALE TERMINAL HAVING CUT OUT PORTIONS AT EACH SIDE EDGE, COMPRISINGAN ELONGATED MEMBER HAVING A GENERALLY RECTANGULAR CONTACT PORTION ATTHE FRONT END WITH AN UPWARDLY FACING BOTTOM SURFACE, THE SIDES OF SAIDCONTACT PORTION BEING BENT INWARDLY TOWARD EACH OTHER TO FORM A CHANNELPORTION FOR RECEIVING THE MALE TERMINAL, SAID INWARDLY BENT SIDES HAVINGDOWNWARDLY FACING LOWER SURFACES, AT LEAST A PORTION OF SAID DOWNWARDLYFACING SURFACES BEING SPACED FROM SAID UPWARDLY FACING SURFACE BY ADISTANCE LESS THAN THE THICKNESS OF SAID MALE TERMINAL WHEREBY SAIDDOWNWARDLY FACING SURFACES AND SAID UPWARDLY FACING SURFACE EXERTPRESSURE ON SAID MALE TERMINAL FROM OPPOSITE SIDES, AN INTERMEDIATEPORTION EXTENDING INTEGRALLY REARWARDLY FROM SAID CONTACT PORTION ANDHAVING A SUBSTANTIALLY FLAT BOTTOM, VERTICAL SIDE WALLS AND AN OPEN TOP,AND AN ELECTRICAL CORD CONNECTING PORTION EXTENDING INTEGRALLY FROM THEREAR OF SAID INTERMEDIATE PORTION, THE SIDE WALLS OF SAID INTERMEDIATEPORTION HAVING INTEGRAL MEANS FOR ENGAGING AND INTERLOCKING WITH THE CUTPORTIONS OF A MALE TERMINAL INSERTED IN SAID CHANNEL PORTION, SAID MEANSCOMPRISING SPRING FINGERS EXTENDING INWARDLY AND REARWARDLY FROM THE TOPEDGE OF EACH OF SAID SIDE WALLS TO EXERT PRESSURE ON SAID MALE TERMINALSUBSTANTIALLY PERPENDICULARLY TO SAID SIDE WALLS.